Particle matter catalyst inserted muffler

ABSTRACT

A particle matter catalyst inserted muffler may include a first exhaust gas discharge pipe penetratively joined to baffles and protruding in a predetermined length from a rear baffle for guiding outside an exhaust gas introduced into a muffler housing, and a second exhaust gas discharge pipe that fits in an end portion of the first exhaust gas discharge pipe while penetratively fitting in an end plate that is inserted into one opening of the muffler housing toward the rear bavbffle to be joined to the muffler housing.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims priority to Korean Application Serial Number 10-2008-0088591, filed on Sep. 9, 2008, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein for all purposes by this reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler mainly used for a commercial vehicle, and particularly, to a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler that is capable of improving purification efficiency of exhaust gas by enhancing air-tightness between a baffle and a muffler housing.

2. Description of Related Art

Generally, a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler mainly used for a commercial vehicle includes a muffler housing 1, a plurality of baffles 2 that is inserted in muffler housing 1 to partition the inside of muffler housing 1 into a plurality of chambers, a plurality of catalyst cans 3 that are supported by penetratively fitting in baffles 2 and are incorporated with catalysts for primarily purifying particle matters of exhaust gas, an exhaust gas inlet pipe 4 that is inserted in muffler housing 1 at one side of muffler housing 1 to allow the exhaust gas to flow in muffler housing 1, an end plate 5 that fit in both opened sides of muffler housing 1 to seal the inside of muffler housing 1, and an exhaust gas outlet pipe 6 that is extended to the outside of muffler housing surfaces by sequentially penetrating baffle 2 and one-side end plate 5 to allow the exhaust gas in muffler housing 1 to be exhausted outside.

As a result, the exhaust gas exhausted from an engine flows in a front chamber in muffler housing 1 through exhaust gas inlet pipe 4 as indicated by an arrow and the flow-in exhaust gas flows through catalyst cans 3 and flows in a rear chamber, such that hazardous components such as particle matters are filtered and reduced. Further, the exhaust gas that flows in the rear chamber flows on exhaust gas outlet pipe 6 and is exhausted outside of muffler housing 1.

The above-described known particle matter catalyst inserted muffler is manufactured by the following manufacturing process. First, catalyst can 3 and exhaust gas outlet pipe 6 are coupled with baffle 2 by welding with being penetratively fitted in baffle 2. An outer peripheral portion of baffle 2 is coupled with an inner peripheral surface of muffler housing 1 by welding while baffle 2, and catalyst can 3 and exhaust gas outlet pipe 6 that are assembled as above are press-fitted in muffler housing 1. Subsequently, exhaust gas inlet pipe 4 is inserted into muffler housing 1 by penetrating one side of muffler housing 1 and end plate 5 is coupled with muffler housing 1 by welding with being press-fitted in both opening portions of muffler housing 1.

However, in a process of assembling the above-described known muffler by welding, as shown in FIG. 2, at the time of injecting a welding rod 8 at 30 to 45 degrees in order to couple a bottom edge of rear baffle 2 with a bottom surface of muffler housing 1 by welding, since exhaust gas outlet pipe 6 elongates to the outside of muffler housing 1, welding rod 8 and exhaust gas outlet pipe 6 interfere with each other, whereby it is difficult to inject welding rod 8. Therefore, the bottom edge of rear baffle 2 is not normally coupled with the bottom surface of muffler housing 1 by welding, thus, a gap therebetween is formed. The exhaust gas is leaked through the gap in a state that the exhaust gas is not purified by catalyst, thereby reducing the purification efficiency of the exhaust gas and causing atmospheric pollution.

The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Various aspects of the present invention are directed to provide a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler that is capable of improving the purification efficiency of exhaust gas by completely coupling a baffle with a muffler housing by welding to remove a gap between the baffle and the muffler housing and thus, saving manufacturing cost by reducing a coating amount of catalyst media.

In an aspect of the present invention, the article matter catalyst inserted muffler, may include a first exhaust gas discharge pipe penetratively joined to baffles and protruding in a predetermined length from a rear baffle for guiding outside an exhaust gas introduced into a muffler housing, and a second exhaust gas discharge pipe that fits in an end portion of the first exhaust gas discharge pipe while penetratively fitting in an end plate that is inserted into one opening of the muffler housing toward the rear baffle to be joined to the muffler housing.

A distance between the rear baffle and the end plate may be longer than the predetermined length of the first exhaust gas discharge pipe.

A gasket may be disposed at a space where the first exhaust gas discharge pipe and the second exhaust gas discharge pipe are overlapped each other.

The second exhaust gas discharge pipe may include an extension portion having a diameter larger than a diameter of the first exhaust gas discharge pipe and the gasket being closely contacted therebetween, and an assembly guide formed in a front side of the extension portion wherein a diameter of the assembly guide expands out from the extension portion.

The second exhaust gas discharge pipe may further include a stopper portion formed in a rear side thereof and a diameter of a lower portion thereof is smaller or equal to the diamater of the first exhaust gas discharge pipe.

A plurality of baffles may be inserted into the muffler housing to be integrately attached to the muffler housing and a catalyst can is fixedly joined through the baffles.

The methods and apparatuses of the present invention have other features and advantages which will be apparent from or are set forth in more detail in the accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein, and the following Detailed Description of the Invention, which together serve to explain certain principles of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an internal structure of a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler in related art.

FIG. 2 is an assembly illustration diagram of a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler in related art.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an assembly perspective view of a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an assembly illustration diagram of a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

It should be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various features illustrative of the basic principles of the invention. The specific design features of the present invention as disclosed herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes will be determined in part by the particular intended application and use environment.

In the figures, reference numbers refer to the same or equivalent parts of the present invention throughout the several figures of the drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present invention(s), examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. While the invention(s) will be described in conjunction with exemplary embodiments, it will be understood that present description is not intended to limit the invention(s) to those exemplary embodiments. On the contrary, the invention(s) is/are intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents and other embodiments, which may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exploded perspective view and an assembly illustration diagram of a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler according to an exemplary embodiment. Therefore, like reference numerals refer to the same elements as the related art and detailed description thereof is omitted.

In a structure of a particle matter catalyst inserted muffler according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 that discharges exhaust gas introduced into a muffler housing 1 outside has a dual pipe structure that is composed of a first exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 a and a second exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 b that are separated from each other and are assembled with each other in assembly.

That is, first exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 a sequentially penetrates a front baffle 9, a center baffle 10, and a rear baffle 2 to be integrately attached to the baffles. First exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 a projects from rear baffle 2 to the outside in the least length for joining second exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 b thereto to be described below. A gasket 17 is fixedly attached to the outer periphery of a portion of first exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 a, which projects from rear baffle 2.

Gasket 17 may be attached to the inner peripheral surface of an extension portion 16 ba of second exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 b.

Second exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 b is penetratively joined to one end plate 5 that fits in one opening of muffler housing 1. An extension portion 16 ba having an predetermined diameter and an assembly guide 16 c that is opened in a horn shape for smooth assembly with first exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 a are disposed at a front portion of second exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 b that projects to the inside of muffler housing 1.

The second exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 b may further include a stopper portion 16 d formed in a rear side thereof and a diameter of the lower portion of the stopper portion 16 d may be smaller or equal to the diamater of the first exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 a to stop axial movement of the second exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 b in more than a predetermined distance along the first exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 a.

As a result, when a welding rod 8 is injected at a predetermined angle in order to integrately attach rear baffle 2 to a bottom surface of muffler housing 1 by welding as shown in FIG. 5, the projection length of first exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 a is short and thus, there is no concern that welding rod 8 and first exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 a interfere with each other. Therefore, it is possible to improve airtightness by smoothly attaching rear baffle 2 to the bottom surface of muffler housing 1.

Subsequently, when end plate 5 is inserted and assembled through one opening of muffler housing 1, second exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 b is coupled to first exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 a and the outer peripheral surface of gasket 17 is closely contacted with the inner peripheral surface of extension portion 16 ba of the second exhaust gas discharge pipe 16 b, such that gasket 17 prevents the exhaust gas from being leaked at an assembly portion where first and second exhaust gas discharge pipes 16 a and 16 b are overlapped with each other.

For convenience in explanation and accurate definition in the appended claims, the terms “front,” “rear,” “inner,” and “outer” are used to describe features of the exemplary embodiments with reference to the positions of such features as displayed in the figures.

The foregoing descriptions of specific exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain certain principles of the invention and their practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to make and utilize various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, as well as various alternatives and modifications thereof. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the Claims appended hereto and their equivalents. 

1. A particle matter catalyst inserted muffler, comprising: a first exhaust gas discharge pipe penetratively joined to baffles and protruding in a predetermined length from a rear baffle for guiding outside an exhaust gas introduced into a muffler housing; and a second exhaust gas discharge pipe that fits in an end portion of the first exhaust gas discharge pipe while penetratively fitting in an end plate that is inserted into one opening of the muffler housing toward the rear baffle to be joined to the muffler housing.
 2. The particle matter catalyst inserted muffler according to claim 1, wherein a distance between the rear baffle and the end plate is longer than the predetermined length of the first exhaust gas discharge pipe.
 3. The particle matter catalyst inserted muffler according to claim 1, wherein a gasket is disposed at a space where the first exhaust gas discharge pipe and the second exhaust gas discharge pipe are overlapped each other.
 4. The particle matter catalyst inserted muffler according to claim 3, wherein the second exhaust gas discharge pipe includes: an extension portion having a diameter larger than a diameter of the first exhaust gas discharge pipe and the gasket being closely contacted therebetween; and an assembly guide formed in a front side of the extension portion wherein a diameter of the assembly guide expands out from the extension portion.
 5. The particle matter catalyst inserted muffler according to claim 4, wherein the second exhaust gas discharge pipe further includes a stopper portion formed in a rear side thereof and a diameter of a lower portion thereof is smaller or equal to the diamater of the first exhaust gas discharge pipe.
 6. The particle matter catalyst inserted muffler according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of baffles are inserted into the muffler housing to be integrately attached to the muffler housing and a catalyst can is fixedly joined through the baffles. 